Identity Statuses
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An identity involves the type of career a person wants to pursue, a person’s political standpoint, religious beliefs, relationship status, achievement and intellectual capabilities, sexual preference, cultural and ethnic background, interests, personality and physical body image.
- The first identity status is called diffusion. Diffusion status is when a person is overwhelmed by achieving their identity and does minimal to try and accomplish this task.
- The second identity status is foreclosure. Foreclosure status is when a parent determines the person’s status rather than personally choosing their own status.
- The third status is Moratorium and occurs when a person is exploring different identity statuses but has yet to decide on one that is satisfactory for them.
- The fourth identity status is achievement and occurs when the person has chosen their own identity after exploring all other identities. Identity statuses change throughout development as a person finds out whom they are, what they are all about and where exactly they want to go in life.
This youtube.com video further explains the adolescent identity statuses.
Identity Status Scenarios
- Kenny is about to graduate from high school, barely. His grades are borderline, he has a few friends, no real interests, and spends most of his time after school staying in his room listening to music. He seems to have no interest in making plans for the future or even finding a job to support himself after high school. This child can be described as having a diffusion identity status. Kenny is doing close to nothing to help himself establish an identity. He is preoccupying himself with other things like music and keeping to himself. He doesn’t have many friends or real interests, which leads a person to believe he has a lack of motivation to achieve anything. Kenny’s grades are enough to show that he is unmotivated and has no intention of trying to achieve an identity.
- Sue seems to change her mind every few weeks about almost everything. She cannot seem to settle on what she wants to do after high school. At times she says she wants to go to college, but at other times she says she wants to see the world. One minute she wants to be a doctor, the next she wants to be a writer. She is also continually changing her appearance. One month she was preppy, the next day she dyed her hair and bought a new wardrobe. Her parents are not too concerned. They support her ideas about the future and know she will eventually find her path. Sue is categorized as having a moratorium identity status. Sue is exploring different ideas of what she wants to be but has yet to decide on one. The fact that she cannot seem to settle on what she wants to do after graduation shows that she is indecisive, fitting perfectly into the moratorium identity status. Once Sue decides on a future that is satisfactory for her she will no longer belong in this identity status. As of now, she is indecisive and cannot determine what is right for her. Her parents are doing the right thing by not being concerned because this gives Sue a chance to weigh her options and decide on her future on her own.
- Josh has just started college this semester and is positive he wants to go to medical school. He has never considered any other career for himself. His father is a doctor, as was his grandfather. For as long as he can remember, all he has ever wanted to do is follow in his father’s footsteps and become a doctor as well. He is sure it is his calling. Josh is considered to be in the foreclosure identity status. It seems that his family has influenced the decision of his future quite a bit. It also seems as if Josh has not fully explored any alternative options on his own. His father is a doctor, and all he has ever wanted to do is be like his dad. A foreclosure identity status is one that is determined by his father rather than on his own. Josh has not given his future much thought, besides the fact that he wants to be like his dad. It is very possible Josh could hate being a doctor and find he is interested in a completely different occupation.
- Cindy has just graduated with a B.A. in psychology. It took her almost 6 years to get her degree because she changed her mind so many times. First she was an English major, then it was art, next business. Finally, she took a general psychology class and was hooked. Later, she got a part-time job at a mental health facility and knew this was the field for her. Now she is going to graduate school to earn her Ph. D. in psychology. From her experience working at the mental health facility she knows she wants to be a psychologist who works with troubled children. Cindy has an achievement identity status. She has explored multiple alternatives and found a specific identity that suits her. She enjoys working as a psychologist and deliberately chose to pursue her degree further. She has achieved her goal of finding an identity after exploring and changing her mind so many times of what she wants to do in the future.